Despite injuries, Atlanta's loaded roster, elite pitching, and revamped bullpen are poised for a dominant NL East run
After winning the World Series in 2021, the Atlanta Braves have had a serious falloff since.
2022 and 2023 were good years for Atlanta, but the club saw consecutive divisional round exits to the Philadelphia Phillies. Atlanta hasn't made the postseason since.
You would imagine that Atlanta's roster is significantly different now than it was five years ago due to the lack of success, but that simply is not the case.
Key contributors such as Matt Olson, Austin Riley, Michael Harris, Ozzie Albies and Marcel Ozuna have remained on the roster, but that core hasn't been able to carry Atlanta back to the postseason, especially with their team leader sidelined for quite some time.
Superstar outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. tore his ACL in May of 2024, forcing Acuna to miss the remainder of the 2024 season and half of the 2025 season. However, when Acuna returned in May of 2025 he didn't skip a beat, hitting a home run in his first at bat.
Atlanta's ace Spencer Strider also suffered a season ending injury to his right elbow in May of 2024 due to a torn UCL. Prior to his injury, Strider was considered to be one of the best pitchers in all of baseball due to his nasty swing and miss stuff.
Strider led the entire MLB with 281 strikeouts and 20 wins, yet finished fourth in NL Cy Young voting behind Blake Snell, Zac Gallen, and Logan Webb.
If Atlanta gets a healthy year out of Strider, this is one of the best pitchers on the planet and would significantly elevate the floor of this ball club.
Atlanta also has 2x Cy Young award winner Chris Sale on their team, who recently won the Cy Young award with Atlanta in 2024. Sale is one of the best top of the rotation arms in baseball alongside Strider.
They also struck gold with 25 year-old Spencer Schwellenbach, who has a 3.23 ERA in 234.1 innings pitched through his first two major league seasons.
A rotation headlined by Chris Sale, Spencer Strider and Spencer Schwellenbach is one of the best in baseball, if healthy.
Atlanta has prioritized high leverage relievers so far throughout free agency, and boy did they do good on that front.
Atlanta brought in 34 year-old closer Robert Suarez on a 3-year, $45 million dollar contract. Suarez's 76 saves since the start of 2024 is first in the entire MLB, with his 2.87 ERA good for 25th amongst qualified relievers.
Pairing Suarez up with Raisel Iglesias makes for an elite backend of the bullpen for 2026.
After making serious upgrades to their bullpen, Atlanta will now rely on their offense to get back up to speed.
Atlanta also resigned in utility man Ha-Seong Kim, who is expected to play shortstop, to a one-year, $20 million dollar contract. Kim should provide some elite defense in the middle infield for Atlanta.
Atlanta, if healthy, should be one of the better teams in ALL of baseball, and I'm banking on their good health to take them back to the top of the NL East.
With the New York Mets losing significant pieces in Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil, I expect another disappointing year in Queens.
Although Philadelphia are favorites to win the division, lack of outfield defense and bullpen arms could come back to bite them down the stretch.
The Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals don't have the firepower to compete in this division yet, so for that reason, I'm pushing all my chips and taking the Atlanta Braves to win the NL East, once again.
© Brett Davis-Imagn Images